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Medicare-for-all discussion presents golden opportunity for small business

Enterprise, The (UT)

"The most important event in recent history of ideas is the demise of the socialist dream," said George Gilder in his 1981 book Wealth and Poverty. It sure looks like Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Andrew Gillum did not read this book.

I am an expert when it comes to Medicare because I have been a participant for nearly two decades. I am an expert when it comes to small business because I owned one.

Bernie Sanders and his crowd have been touting Medicare-for-all as a better way to deliver medicine to Americans. In the articles I have been reading, I have not found this to be true. The U.S. has a much higher participation rate than those countries with socialized medicine.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wants Medicare-for-all so we can lower the cost of funerals. Abetter way to lower funeral costs is to buy a less expensive casket and a get two or more competitive bids from different funeral homes.

Andrew Gillum, in his bid to be governor of Florida, is pushing for a statewide Medicare-for-all plan. In order to pay for it, he has to raise taxes and his tax of choice is one on corporations, which will raise the cost of their products to all Floridians. A better way to do it would be to just forget the stupid idea in the first place.

In recent articles on Medicare-for-all, I have been reading conflicting comments about the costs. Both sides - for and against - make compelling arguments why their plan will cut the cost of healthcare. To me, those who are for Medicare-for-all make the most sense on how to cut healthcare costs. Their solution is cut the income to all healthcare providers.

In order to bring the profits of U.S. healthcare providers in line with healthcare providers worldwide, these healthcare providers, including pharmaceuticals, will have to accept a 30 percent to 40 percent cut in pay. I asked a retired internist friend of mine, "Will doctors accept lower pay?" He replied, "Over time, they will."

So, let's see if we can make some sense of this mishmash of convoluted ideas. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation in 2017, just 50 percent of firms with three to 48 workers offered health insurance. Five years ago, 59 percent of companies in that category offered health benefits. Kaiser also reported that the average coverage offered by employers, in 2017, pushed toward costing $19,000 for a family plan. Meanwhile, the number of firms providing insurance to workers continued to edge lower. So, let's apply a little common sense and see if we can come up with a better plan of action.

First and foremost, keep the federal government out of the equation. What in the hell makes our elected officials think that they can manage a person's healthcare better than a doctor and his patient? The plan that we come up with must focus on doing just this.

Another priority is to get insurance companies out of middle of the process. This can be accomplished by allowing small businesses to form their own cooperatives that hire their own doctors and build their own clinics. They could also put out competitive bids for services for their employees from pharmaceutical companies and hospitals.

Yes, "Medicare For All Is a Fantasy," according to a headline in The Atlantic in August. But it presents a golden opportunity for the owners of small business. If you small-business owners want to provide better healthcare at a lower cost, it's time for you to man the barricades.

"Medicare-for-all is both a warning and an opportunity," The Atlantic said. Our elected officials are trying to bribe the public and get this obnoxious plan adopted.

Small-business owners can and should present a coherent alternative. Only by convincing their employees to vote for such an alternative, as mentioned above, can America move forward.

Robert Pembroke is the former chairman and CEO of Pembrokes Inc. in Salt Lake City.